


How to File an Abuse Report on AO3

by ao3commentoftheday



Series: How to AO3 [6]
Category: No Fandom
Genre: Fanwork Research & Reference Guides, Gen, abuse reporting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-18
Updated: 2020-10-18
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:27:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,100
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27088612
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ao3commentoftheday/pseuds/ao3commentoftheday
Summary: When users break the Terms of Service, other users are able to report them using the Report Abuse function. Each of these reports is read and investigated by an AO3 volunteer.This brief guide is meant to provide users with the information they need in order to write clear reports that AO3 volunteers will be able to investigate more easily.
Series: How to AO3 [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1854832
Kudos: 8





	How to File an Abuse Report on AO3

**Author's Note:**

> This is an overview guide. If you have questions that aren't addressed here, please leave them in the comments.
> 
> This got really long, so the tl;dr is: Provide specific information about the issue, including copy/pasting where necessary. Link as close to the problem as you can get. One user = one report. Multiple users = multiple reports. 
> 
> Every single abuse report gets read by a human volunteer. Everything you can do to make their job easier will be very much appreciated. ❤

**Step One: Decide whether an Abuse Report is necessary in this situation**

  * Can you resolve this by talking to the author? Do that instead. It’s faster and more effective and most people are pretty understanding if you approach them politely with a request (not a demand). If they deny your request, you can contact the Abuse team if necessary. If they ask you to stop commenting, you should stop.
  * Has someone else already filed a report? Then you don’t need to. Additional reports just fill up the ticket queue and take volunteer time, slowing down the whole process. If you have information that wasn’t provided in the original report, that’s fine. Otherwise, one report is enough. If the Abuse Report page says the link has been reported too many times, do not submit another report.
  * Do you have an issue with a story on the Archive? Check the [Terms of Service](https://archiveofourown.org/tos). If the fic violates the TOS, proceed. If it doesn’t, then sending a report probably won’t do anything. If you’re not sure whether or not something violates the TOS and you want some additional information, check out the [Terms Of Service FAQ](https://archiveofourown.org/tos_faq#max_inclusiveness). 
  * Are you having technical issues on the Archive? You actually want to [contact Support](https://archiveofourown.org/support) instead. On the other hand, do not submit an Abuse Report to the Support team. They will tell you to resubmit the report to the Abuse team instead.
  * Is the issue happening on AO3? If it is, then proceed. If it’s happening on Wattpad or Tumblr or Twitter or somewhere else, then you’ll need to contact that site for help instead.



**Step Two: Go to the[Report Abuse page](https://archiveofourown.org/abuse_reports/new)**

Once you decide that filing a report is the right step to take, scroll on down to the footer and click on Report Abuse. This will take you to the form page. The form will automatically populate with a link to the page you’re on when you click into it from the footer, so make sure that’s the page you want to report. If it’s not, you can delete that link and put in the right one.

You can also find the reporting form by going directly to <https://archiveofourown.org/abuse_reports/new>. This will not pre-populate any links. 

If you’re a logged in user, your username and email address will already be in the form. If you’re not logged in or if you don’t have an account, you’ll need to provide a name and an email address. You can’t submit a report anonymously and you need to use a valid email because that’s how the Abuse team will be in contact with you.

Make sure your email address is one that you can access and check!

**Step Three: Gather your information**

There is information you should provide to make your report clear to the volunteer who reads it.

  * Which of the [Terms of Service](https://archiveofourown.org/tos) is being violated? I’ll often do a key word search to find the specific section I’m looking for when I’m referencing something in the TOS. It’s faster than trying to read through the whole document. You can phrase the violation in your own words, or you can copy/paste the section of the TOS that you believe has been violated. Just make sure that you are clear about what the problem is.
  * Where on the Archive is the issue? You’ll need to provide the link to the fic, comment, etc. that you want to report. If the fic is a multi-chap, link to the problem chapter. If the problem is a comment, link to the comment thread.
  * Relevant details. If you’re reporting a user, provide their username. If you’re reporting a fic, provide the username and the fic name. Copy/paste the text that’s causing the report or tell the Abuse team where to find it. If the problem is in chapter 57 of a 75 chapter fic, say so. Otherwise a volunteer will need to read through the entire fic in the hopes of finding the problem. 
  * Links! The report requires one link, but if the problem is occurring in multiple places, list them all and provide links to each instance if you are able to. It is helpful to give a brief description of why a link is relevant, if it’s not immediately obvious. See the point above about directing the volunteer to the relevant paragraph or top/bottom of the page etc. to make it easier for them to find the TOS violation. In order to make sure that your report isn't marked as spam, you can use a simplified version of the url that takes out the ao3.org part and just provide /works/123456 or /users/name



**Step Four: File**

Once you’re sure that filing a report is the right thing to do and you’ve gone to the form and filled in all of the information, hit the submit button. 

Then check your email. You’ll get an automated response almost immediately to let you know that your report went through. Then it’s just a matter of waiting for an email from a volunteer either asking you for more information or updating you on their investigation.

Remember that emails might end up in your spam folder, so it’s a good idea to check there if you haven't heard anything back.

For confidentiality reasons, the Abuse team will never verify whether or not a report has been submitted. 

**Other reasons to contact the Abuse team:**

  * You lost or forgot your login information. Make sure you include the username of the account you’re trying to log into and the email address linked to the account (even if that email is now disabled). If you don’t know the email address, say so because you will be asked. If you’re not sure, tell them your best guess.
  * You want to set up a Fannish Next of Kin. You’ll need a person who has agreed to be your FNoK and they’ll need to get an AO3 account. Put Fannish Next of Kin in the subject line. Your chosen person will need to submit a report too, saying that they agree and providing your username. 



**One last note:**

If you’re reporting the same user for multiple violations of the Terms of Service (e.g., for multiple instances of harassment), you can list them all in the same report. No need to file a new report for each instance.

However, if you’re reporting more than one user please file a report for each different user. If the users are linked in some way, you can mention that in your relevant information section.


End file.
